BRIN: Post-Disaster Recovery Requires a Multidisciplinary Approach
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Acting Head of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Organisation at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Muhammad Najib Azca, stated that post-disaster recovery must be conducted using a multidisciplinary approach.
“Post-disaster recovery cannot be reduced to mere technical and administrative issues. It is a complex social process, making cross-sector collaboration, multidisciplinary approaches, and diverse perspectives essential, whilst remaining sensitive to social, cultural, and local wisdom contexts,” said Najib.
He made these remarks during his opening address at the Kick-Off Meeting of the Task Force for the Acceleration of Post-Disaster Rehabilitation and Reconstruction (PRR) for Sumatra, held in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Furthermore, Najib explained that from a social sciences and humanities perspective, disasters are viewed not merely as sudden natural events, but as phenomena linked to long-standing social conditions. He noted that disasters can reflect social relations, resource governance, and the accumulation of vulnerabilities across social, economic, cultural, and political dimensions.
In the context of the floods and landslides that hit several regions in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra in 2025, Najib stated that the impacts of disasters are not distributed evenly and follow pre-existing lines of inequality.
“Vulnerable groups—whether due to economic factors, gender, age, or access to resources—are often the most affected and the slowest to recover,” he said.
In line with this, Najib noted that the BRIN PRR Task Force also bears the responsibility of connecting action research results and technological innovations with the actual needs of disaster-affected communities on the ground.
Earlier, during the same event, the Chairman of the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) Central, Muhammad Jusuf Kalla (JK), stated that the recovery from hydrometeorological disasters in Sumatra can be maximised only through collective efforts involving various stakeholders.